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Cover letter without a named contact: the right salutation

Many job postings don't name a specific person to address your cover letter to. A personal salutation still works better than a generic one. Here is how to find the contact person anyway, and what to write when you can't.

First: look for the contact person

Before you fall back on the standard formula, a few minutes of research are worth it:

  1. Read the posting to the end. The name is often further down in a "Kontakt" or "Ihre Ansprechpartnerin" section.
  2. Check the company website, especially the "Karriere" (careers), "Team" or "Personal" (HR) pages.
  3. Search LinkedIn or Xing for "Recruiting" or "HR" plus the company name.
  4. Make a short call. A friendly question about the responsible contact is common in Germany and shows initiative.

If you find a name, use the personal salutation: "Sehr geehrte Frau Müller," or "Sehr geehrter Herr Schmidt,".

When no name can be found

Then the correct and still standard formula is:

Sehr geehrte Damen und Herren,

This is not a makeshift solution. With an unknown recipient it is the formally correct way. Stay away from stilted alternatives like "Sehr geehrte Damen und Herren des Unternehmens XY," or the outdated "An die Personalabteilung,".

What else matters in the salutation

  • Comma, not colon. In a German cover letter the salutation is followed by a comma, and the first word of the text is written in lowercase.
  • Mind academic titles. Degrees like "Dr." belong in the salutation ("Sehr geehrte Frau Dr. Becker,").
  • Spell the name exactly. A typo in the name leaves a bad impression immediately.

The salutation and DIN 5008

In Germany the cover letter is a business letter and follows DIN 5008, the standard that governs the placement of the address, date and subject line, among other things. The salutation comes after the subject line, separated by one blank line. Getting this right makes you look professional from the very first line.

A cover letter that lands

With the Civly cover letter generator you get a cover letter with a DIN 5008 compliant structure, including the correct salutation, whether you have a named contact or not.

How to write the first sentence after the salutation without slipping into clichés is covered in Opening lines for your application.